All Classes of Poison
by Calendulam
Summary: Bella moves to Forks mid-summer and meets Edward Cullen, who seems perfect in every way. But once summer ends and school begins, she discovers that he may not be as wonderful as he appears. AU. All human. M for cussing and future naughtiness.
1. Atropa Belladonna

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything. **

Chapter 1

BPOV

I couldn't believe myself – my third day in Forks and I was already at the hospital emergency room. Who was I kidding? Of course I was already at the emergency room, no one on Earth was as big a klutz as I was. God, if only Charlie would go away. I swear I'd be in less pain if he'd stop hovering. He'll never let me continue to feed him now – my double act of slicing my hand open and inexplicably passing out is probably more traumatising than Renée's cooking ever was.

"Char – Dad?" I quickly thought up a possible distraction.

"Yeah, honey? Do you want me to go ask the nurse when you're gonna see the doctor, Bells?" He looked so shaken up I almost felt guilty.

"No, Dad, really. I'm sure she knows we're here – you've only asked her 5 times already." He winced slightly. _Great, now I really did feel guilty_.

I deliberately made my voice sweeter. "Um – actually, I was wondering if you'd mind getting me a coffee from the cafeteria. Caffeine tends to calm my nerves a bit." Not actually true, but I knew he'd fetch me anything pronto if it might calm me at all – what with my fainting at the smell of my own blood having freaked him out so badly. Probably should have warned him about that in advance…

He stopped his pacing and frantic hair rubbing to smile weakly in my direction. He should really cut that out – he's making his hair recede. "Sure, honey, anything I can do to help." He patted the back of my non-injured hand and rushed off down the hall. I hoped he'd take his time – or at least get sucked into a long, drawn-out conversation with one of Forks' more chatty seniors. _What a horrible thing to wish on your father_. Apparently I was horrible as well as klutzy and bleeding.

"Nice manoeuvre," a low, beautiful voice said quietly from my right.

"Uh – thanks," I replied. I turned my head in the voice's direction and met the clearest green eyes I'd ever seen. They had to be contacts; no one had eyes that colour barring cosmetic or digital enhancement. They were almost sparkling as though lit from within. _Sparkling? Really?_ God, I must be losing a lot of blood – maybe I shouldn't have sent Charlie off after all.

The voice and the eyes, they appeared to have a mouth too – with perfect, full lips that were grinning at the humongous ass I was making of myself. Lord. Three days in town and I was gushing blood from the hand and drooling over the town hottie in the middle of the hospital emergency waiting room. What a winner.

I snapped my gaping mouth shut. I could feel the heat of the blood pooling in my face. My own body was a traitor and always had been -- why should I expect that to ever change? What had he said again? Oh, right, my stealth at getting rid of Charlie.

"You don't think he noticed, do you? That I was trying to get rid of him?"

He shook his head reassuringly. His gorgeous head of reddish-brown locks that stuck up every which way as if he'd just gotten out of bed. After having a wild session. Beautiful, bronze sex hair. "No, he seemed far too preoccupied with worrying to notice. You are an atrociously bad actress though, you should probably know." He grinned at me crookedly again. _God._

My eyes were unfocused and my mouth felt slack. Was he a hypnotist? _Get a grip, Bella._

"What did you do to your hand?" he asked politely, purposely ignoring the way I was openly staring at him with lust in my eyes.

"Er- I cut it open with a kitchen knife. Which is weird, because I'm generally unusually dexterous in the kitchen."

"Unusually?" He was grinning again. _Kill me now. No, take me now. Yes, preferable to dying_.

"Yes. I'm a horrible klutz most of the time. All of the time, apparently."

He laughed softly making my insides squirm. I looked away before he could read it all over my face.

"What are you in for? You look uninjured and remarkably healthy."

He didn't answer right away, so I looked back at him. He was glancing over towards the nurses' station. _Ah, pretty nurse. Damn_.

"Or just here scoping out the hot nurses," I muttered.

"What?" he laughed again. "No – um – no." He seemed suddenly nervous. "I'm just waiting for an opening to talk to my father, actually. He's working in there." He pointed at the doors to the emergency ward where I desperately needed to be, but somehow was no longer in a hurry to get to. Funny how that worked.

"I'll make sure you see him first though," he continued. "Your hand is far more important than a message from my mother, wouldn't you say?"

"We could kill two birds with one stone if you want. As long as you don't get nauseous watching human skin being sewn back together."

"I think I can wait – he's a quick stitcher. Does it bother _you_, watching the stitching?"

"Not anymore." Did I really just ask this complete stranger to come in with me while I got my hand sewn back together? I really have lost a lot of blood. At least he didn't back away slowly.

He smiled at me instead. "Right. Horrible klutz and all that."

The stupid, pretty nurse picked that exact moment to interrupt. And she smiled all sweetly at Hot Sparkly Eyes too, like he was a close personal friend. Oh wait, she probably knows him if his father is a doctor here… or she knows him because they're both hot and often park along wooded roads and screw in the backseat of his car.

"Miss Swan? Doctor Cullen will be right with you. Are you holding up all right?"

I forced myself to smile and told her I was fine. _Just go away, you're ruining my one and only chance to talk to hottie over here_. She went back to her station where she belonged. I had no right to be bothered, but it still pissed me off when she batted her lashes at him before walking away. Not that I could really blame her.

"So you're Chief Swan's daughter?"

I winced. Everyone in Forks' stared at me when I was out with Charlie. Stared like they'd been gossiping, and were going to do a whole lot more as soon as we were out of earshot.

"So you've heard all the gossip about me too, huh?" I muttered, looking down at a stack of magazines.

"No. I heard you call him dad, and then she called you Miss Swan, so I put two and two together. I don't pay much attention to that sort of thing."

I looked back up; he appeared to be sincere. "Neither do I."

"So – anything good? Gossip-wise, I mean? Kicked out of a previous school, been to rehab, warrants for your arrest that your father isn't aware of?" He grinned cheekily at me.

I couldn't help but return it. "Nothing so newsworthy, I'm afraid. We really aren't that exciting – though some people around here might tell you otherwise."

"Well, people around here often have too much time on their hands," he said darkly. "Small towns can be like that."

A nurse came out from behind the swinging doors carrying a chart. "Isabella Swan?"

My heart dropped. "Ugh – time to get all sewn up," I mumbled.

"It was nice talking to you, Isabella," he said quietly, then stood up and walked in the other direction before I had the chance to correct him. I detested being called Isabella. Oh well, he could call me whatever he wanted. Who was I kidding?

Damn! I didn't even catch his name! I slumped out of my seat and walked towards the beckoning nurse.

**Let me know what you think!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: This chapter took me forever. It was pissing me off, so I abandoned it for a couple of months. I wrote half of it in Edward's POV, but he was being a cranky ass and wouldn't cooperate, so I've decided to write this entire story from Bella's perspective. I'll probably post the bits and pieces of Edward sometime as outtakes if anyone is interested in reading them. ****Disclaimer: I own nothing; I only play. **

Chapter 2

I woke up on my fifth day in Forks already bored out of my skull. I'd reorganised my room the morning before, and spent the afternoon cleaning the clutter of old Tupperware and useless dishes from my dad's kitchen cupboards. I needed to make room for actual food, which I intended on purchasing today at the town's one and only grocery store. _Oh joy, it's sure to be the high point of my day. _

I jumped out of bed and threw on the clothes I'd dropped by the side the night before; I was only doing more housework, so who cared? It's not like anyone was going to see me besides Charlie, and he'd seen me at my very worst on numerous occasions.

My thoughts drifted to Hot Sparkly Eyes, as they had embarrassingly often since I'd seen him at the hospital two days ago, but I shook my head quickly to rid it of the images. It's not as if someone like him was going to be hanging out at the supermarket, and even if he were, he would pay me no mind. I wondered again why he had bothered to strike up a conversation with me in the waiting room. He'd probably only wanted to find out how I'd butchered myself – boys liked that sort of gore, didn't they? Not that I was anything anywhere near an expert on that subject. The boys, not the gore -- I certainly knew all about blood and gore.

I sighed deeply and headed to the small, cramped, and only bathroom to clean up for my exciting day. I was almost wishing for school to begin to break up the tedium. _Almost._

I was throwing a load of Charlie's uniform pants into the dryer when I heard a knock on the door. I quickly straightened my clothes and grabbed the elastic from my wrist to throw my straggly hair up into a messy ponytail. _Ugh, what a time for visitors_.

I ran to the door, keeping my eyes on my feet to avoid tripping, unlocked it and yanked it open.

And I froze.

Sparkly Eyes was standing on Charlie's doorstep, his hand raised, as if he were about to knock on the door a second time. Somehow, impossibly, he looked even better than I remembered. His eyes were piercing, his mouth was full and kissable, and his hair was falling all over the place as if it, too, was swooning at his very presence. _Oh shit, I'm gaping like a fish again. _

"Um…. hi," I forced myself to greet him. I felt my cheeks flood with warmth in the usual way. It made me want to punch myself.

"Hello. I'm sorry for turning up like this – Isabella," he said. His voice was even better than I remembered it, too. It was like a caress. "I'm Edward Cullen. We met the other day at the hospital." He motioned to my injured hand.

_Cullen, of course._ Of course Dr Hotsy Totsy from the emergency room was his father; I should have been able to put two and two together. Though they looked nothing alike, they both had the innate talent of making me act like a complete imbecile. Those were some genes. And, er, speaking of jeans – the ones he was currently wearing looked really, really good clinging to his thighs. I needed to get a grip before I started drooling.

"Yes, I remember you," I said too quickly. I felt like an even bigger idiot. "Though I didn't get your name then. It's nice to meet you, Edward."

"I apologise for that by the way, it was rude of me. I would like to use the excuse that I was terribly distracted at the time, but I really should have introduced myself properly."

He smiled at me, and my mind became an incoherent, giddy jumble. God, he was just… ugh!

"As I said, I'm sorry for turning up like this. I was driving by, and I knew this was Chief Swan's house. I didn't think you really knew many people in town, so I thought I'd stop in and see if you wanted to do anything today. I could show you around town or something…" he trailed off. He was looking at me like I was a mental patient. I snapped my mouth shut and tried, vainly, to form a response in my head.

"Never mind, then. It's all right. I'll just…" he motioned to the driveway with his hand. It was beautiful, too -- long, tapered fingers and perfectly shaped nails. _He's going to leave; snap out of it, moron! _

"No!" I practically shouted, shaking my head. _Don't yell at him!_ I quieted my voice "No, please don't leave. That would be great. It's really nice of you. Um… would you like to come in? I should probably change, I'm all grubby from unpacking…" I made an excuse for my rumpled clothes. Why did I have to look so horrible when he was such a vision?

"Sure, that would be great," he said with a smile.

I nodded like an idiot, and stepped aside to let him in. I quickly excused myself and ran upstairs to change.

I pulled clothes helter-skelter out of my dresser and closet, trying to find something that looked half decent on me. I settled on jeans and a short-sleeved blouse that Renee had talked me into buying before the move. It still had tags on it, so I pulled them off and threw it over my white cotton bra, hastily fastening the buttons. I scuttled to the bathroom, and tried in vain to do something with my hair. I brushed it out and fixed the ponytail; there really wasn't much else I could do with it without washing it again. That's what I got for going to sleep with wet hair.

I skipped down the steps as quickly as possible without being a physical danger to myself, and watched Edward studying Charlie's Photo Wall of Shame. Like I wanted this guy to see pictures of me with no teeth and too large ears?

I walked up behind him. "God, I wish Charlie would take those down. It's so embarrassing."

He turned to face me, and I felt the heat rise under my skin again. This was getting ridiculous; I couldn't even look at the guy without turning into a tomato.

"I can see why he doesn't. You were adorable. He's obviously very proud of you."

I felt a sudden flash of guilt; the pictures were really all my dad had of me over the last 17 years, and I was willing to begrudge him those just to ease my embarrassment a little bit. I really was a horrible daughter to him. I would have to make him a special dinner tonight.

But right now… I was preoccupied. "So –" I said, biting my lip, "what do you want to do?"

"You choose. I can show you around if you don't already know your way. Although Forks is a pretty small place, I suppose."

"I did spend some time here when I was younger – summer vacations with Charlie. I never saw you before, though." _I would certainly have remembered that._ My face resumed its blushing.

"I only moved here a few years ago myself. You probably already know your way around town then, do you?" he smiled again.

Crap! I needed to act like I was in need of a guide, or I was going to miss out on my chance to spend the day with him. "Guess so," my mouth betrayed me.

"Then what would you like to do, Isabella?"

"Um – it's just Bella, actually. Only my grandmother calls me Isabella," I said distractedly. What was I going to tell him I wanted to do? I couldn't think of a single thing to do around Forks.

He grimaced slightly. "Sorry," he muttered.

I shrugged my shoulders. "You didn't know," I reassured him. He'd probably heard Charlie call me Bella, but it could have been a pet name for all he knew. _Charlie. Ah – supermarket._ "There is one place I do need to go today, though it's not very exciting."

His smile encouraged me to continue.

"I need to buy some groceries. Charlie – my dad – he gave me directions, but I was only half paying attention."

His smile broadened into a grin. "Of course," he said. "There's a great bakery in town, too. They make delicious bread and desserts."

"Yum," I said, drawn in by his enthusiasm. "Maybe we could go there afterwards. I want to make my dad dinner tonight, so I could maybe get him dessert there. He loves apple pie, and I don't feel like fighting with pastry myself."

"You like to cook?" he asked. "What do you make, besides pastry?" He grinned crookedly. No one had ever made asymmetric look so good.

"Pretty much anything. I can make pastry too, but it's more than I want to bother with today." I failed to mention that he was my reason for that; why spend hours making pie when you could spend it with a God in the flesh?

We climbed into Edward's car – a shiny, silver Volvo – and headed to the supermarket. We arrived within minutes, and I felt silly for having asked him to take me, seeing as I could have found it easily on my own by simply driving in the direction of town.

He didn't seem to mind, however; he was smiling jovially when he ran around to the passenger side to open the door for me.

"Why, thank-you," I said with a grin. "You're quite the gentleman."

"My mother would never forgive me if I were anything less," he said in a teasing voice.

I couldn't say that I was used to being around him – for I didn't think that would ever be completely possible – but I was growing more comfortable around him already. I could even look at him without blushing, though that only worked if I kept my thoughts – and eyes – from wandering too far from the proper places.

We walked through the light mist to the automatic doors of the grocery store, and Edward went to grab me a cart. I pulled out my shopping list, and we walked over toward the produce. I couldn't help the giggle that escaped me at the sight of Edward doing something so mundane as pushing a cart in the supermarket. It was an amusing image to say the least.

"What?" he asked with a smile.

I shook my head vaguely, still grinning, and focused on my list.

We split up in the produce section, me grabbing vegetables while he tackled the fruit aisle. We skipped over the bakery in favour of the little one in town, which Edward assured me was far superior. We meandered through the meat and I chose a few things to offset all of Charlie's fish; as much as I liked making his favourite meals, the fish was already getting tiresome.

I quickly filled the cart with all of the staples that Charlie's cupboards sorely lacked: flour, sugar, olive oil, rice, peanut butter (well, that was for me), and rechecked my list. I'd been craving junky breakfast cereal and Poptarts, so I headed towards the aisle that housed such frivolities, Edward walking beside me, still pushing the cart.

I was trying to decide between the Count Chocula and Cap'n Crunch, with Edward making disgusted noises at the thought of eating either one of the two choices, when we heard the sound of several cereal boxes hitting the floor.

A tiny old lady was trying in vain to reach the Shredded Wheat on the top shelf, and she was knocking everything else over in her wake. Edward immediately went into gentleman mode again -- just as his mother had taught him, apparently – rushing over to the lady's side and asking her if she needed a hand. She motioned to the cereal box, gushing about what a sweet boy he was.

She took a step back as he bent over to tidy up the boxes she had inadvertently knocked to the floor; her head leaned slightly to the side as she took in his appearance. Her eyes looked him up and down and one of her grey, wispy eyebrows quirked naughtily. She was checking him out! She gave his ass one last, long look before he straightened and reached for the box on the topmost shelf. He turned around and passed her the Shredded Wheat with a smile.

"Oh, thank you so very much, dear," she said sweetly, cupping the side of his face in her hand and tapping it lightly. "Such a darling boy." She placed the box in her cart, and wheeled it past me, giving me a lewd wink on her way by. I stifled a laugh.

"So, what's it going to be?" Edward asked, sauntering up beside me. "Sugary, or sugarier," he motioned to the cereal boxes I was still clutching in both hands. I looked at Count Chocula, then back at Edward's face, and that's when I completely lost it. I started shaking with laughter, and there were soon tears streaming from my eyes. I was clutching the cereal boxes so tightly I was crushing their sides. I stacked them on top of each other and wiped at my eyes with my free hand.

"What?" he questioned. He looked frightened for my sanity. "What's so funny?"

I gasped, sucking in a breath. "That old grandma –" I lost it again. "She was – she was checking you out."

"She was not," he replied, looking appalled at the very thought.

"Oh yes she was," I argued, nodding my head vigorously. "She was looking you over like you were a tasty piece of meat and she hadn't eaten for days. Which is probably a fairly good analogy, seeing as she's like 100 years old," I guffawed.

Poor Edward looked scandalised. "And then, when she walked by she gave me one of these," I copied her lewd wink. Edward's face turned a lovely shade of pink and he looked slightly sick. "That's what you get for being such a sweet boy," I said in a shaky, grandma voice, reaching out to cup his cheek as she had done.

When my skin came in contact with his face, it was the strangest feeling. It was like a shock, like static, only not unpleasant. I pulled my hand away, stunned, the smile wiped completely from my face. I stared at my hand for a split second, and then looked up into Edward's face. He had his hand on his cheek where I had just touched him, and he looked just as incredulous as I felt.

_What the hell?_ I shook my head, tossing both the Count Chocula and the Cap'n Crunch into the grocery cart, and turned towards the front of the store.

After a moment I heard Edward rolling the cart beside me, but I dared not look in his direction. I felt so awkward, and I didn't even know why. "I think that's it," I said, studying my list, just to have something to look at.

We walked to the checkout, and he helped me load everything onto the conveyor belt. I paid and we headed outside once again. The mist from earlier had turned into a slight drizzle, so we quickly packed the bags into the trunk of Edward's car. He opened the passenger door for me, and ran the cart over to the nearest coral.

He climbed into the driver's seat and started the engine, turning on the wipers to clear the windshield. '"To the bakery, then?" he asked stiffly.

I felt immediately guilty. Was I bothering him? Of course I was. He had probably wanted to do something fun, and I'd dragged him out to buy groceries and be ogled by old ladies.

"Oh, um… we don't have to," I answered in a shaky voice. "I don't want to be a bother."

"It's no bother," he said, but his voice still sounded strange.

I shrugged my shoulders and looked out my window, not wanting to see if he looked as annoyed as he sounded.

He pulled the car somewhat jerkily out of the parking lot, and drove quickly towards Forks' main drag. He parallel parked with ease between a minivan and a large, black car, and turned off the ignition. He was out of the car in a flash, running around to open my door for me. Well, there was still that, he couldn't be too put out about dragging my ass around.

On the short walk to the bakery, he told me all of their best desserts that I needed to try; he appeared to be over his little snit or whatever it had been, and was completely friendly again. I glanced at him warily for a few moments, but before long my ease with him returned, and I was left wondering if I had imagined his strange reaction.

The bakery was wonderful. They had various samples of bread, cakes and pastries, all of which were delicious. Edward even convinced me to try a scary looking tart with raisins in it and 'rum' in its name; it turned out to be surprisingly tasty as well.

I managed to escape without purchasing one of everything, though I did get a box of tarts and a bag of cookies, as well as Charlie's apple pie. We walked slowly back to Edward's car, weighted down with our baked goods. He opened the door to the backseat, and took everything from my hands to set it down inside.

"Would you like to grab some coffee?" he asked after a moment of hesitation. "To wash down all of that sugar?"

I smiled widely. "I'd love to."

The adorable, crooked grin flashed across his face. "Great. There's a good place just this way," he motioned down the street. I nodded my head and we both headed in that direction.

Once inside, I saw a lady drinking a large mug of something that looked chocolaty and my eyes widened in response.

"Hot chocolate, then?" Edward asked with a laugh. "The hot chocolate here is amazing. They make it all from scratch."

I nodded with enthusiasm and he chuckled. "Two hot chocolates," he told the lady behind the counter.

"Whipped cream?" she asked.

Edward looked at me questioningly. I nodded vigorously again, and he and the lady laughed. "Whipped cream it is, then," he said.

The hot chocolate was divine, creamy and decadent. It was topped with chocolate whipped cream and both white and dark chocolate shavings. "Mmmm…" I mumbled.

Edward chuckled again.

We sipped our hot chocolate, talking amiably about everything from music to the weather. I felt very comfortable with him now, which was surprising considering my earlier reaction when simply looking at his beautiful face. I supposed I must have been desensitised, but I would no doubt have to start from scratch the next time I saw him. Would he want to see me again? I really, really hoped so. He seemed to be having just as good a time as I was.

I smiled, holding my gargantuan mug up to take another sip of chocolate goodness, when movement outside the café's picture window caught my eye. It was the lady from the grocery store, and she was smiling and waving at me. I smirked at Edward.

"What?" he asked.

"Look, it's your new lady friend," I said, waggling my eyebrows at him teasingly.

He rolled his eyes at me, but he was smiling. "I will never come to the aid of a granny in a supermarket again in my life," he said with mock solemnity. "I'm scarred." He took a long drink from his mug, tilting it back to finish it off. "Besides," he continued, "I thought you were my new lady friend."

He grinned widely as my face began to redden. I stared into my mug; the hot chocolate dregs were suddenly extremely interesting.

"Are you finished?" he asked quietly, gesturing to my cup. "It's just with the food in the car – it's getting sort of warm out."

"Oh, right," I grimaced. "The last thing we want to deal with is a trunk full of spoiled meat." I gulped down the last of my drink, and stood, grabbing my bag from the back of the chair.

We drove back to Charlie's in companionable silence. I was once again amazed by how at ease I now felt in Edward's presence, safe and comfortable. A lazy smile spread across my face as I watched him drive, his long fingers curled elegantly around the leather of the wheel, his shoulders relaxed against the seat, his face composed. He looked so content, and beyond beautiful.

"What are you smiling about?" he asked in a quiet voice, smiling shyly at me.

"You," I answered truthfully before I could stop myself. "You look so at ease, like you're out for a quiet, Sunday drive, though you're speeding like this is a getaway car."

He chuckled. "I always drive like this."

"So I've noticed. Have you ever gotten a ticket?"

"Not once. Don't worry, your father has no prior reason to dislike me." He looked away swiftly as he said this, uncomfortable with his admission. I bit my lip to hold in my smile.

He parked in the spot the Chief's cruiser usually held on our driveway, beside my new old truck, a gift from Charlie. He pulled the lever to pop the trunk, and climbed quickly out of the car. I waited for him to come around and open my door again, knowing he wanted to please his mother and all. He didn't disappoint; he even grasped my hand to help me out. Those who say chivalry is dead have obviously never met Edward Cullen, I thought with a smile.

He told me to go unlock the front door, and insisted on carrying everything inside. His brow furrowed when I reached into the backseat to grab the bakery sweets, ignoring his request. I rolled my eyes.

"What? I can get these at least," I said to him. He shrugged his shoulders and went to gather the bags from the trunk.

He carried everything in to Charlie's small kitchen, and even helped me put it all away. When the last bag was emptied he turned to me and smiled.

"Well, I had best be off before Esme sends out a search party," he said.

"Your mom?"

"Yeah. She's probably wondering where I've been for so long."

"Oh, okay," I said, trying in vain to keep the disappointment from my voice. "Thanks for everything today, Edward. I really appreciate it. And I had fun – even though we were only buying food."

"Me, too," he answered. "Well, I-" he muttered, motioning towards the front door. I nodded and followed him down the hall.

He opened the door and walked out onto the step. I grasped the wooden frame and watched him, sad to see him go. When would I see him again? I missed him already, and he wasn't even gone.

"Goodbye, Edward," I said quietly.

He turned slightly, glancing at me from over his shoulder. He had a strange look on his face, like a mixture of annoyance and embarrassment. "Umm… Bella?" he asked. "Are you doing anything tomorrow?"

_Oh, thank fuck!_ "No," I said too quickly. It was my turn to look embarrassed.

His eyes turned down, looking at his feet, his long, dark lashes creating shadows on his pale skin. "Would you like to go out again? With me?"

I couldn't stop my mouth from widening into a toothy grin, and I didn't even care. Well, barely. "Most definitely."

He finally smiled and nodded his head once, and then he faced forward once more and walked down the driveway. He got into his car and drove away, zooming down the street.

I backed into the house and shut the door, locking it behind me. He was coming back tomorrow! _He was coming back tomorrow_. I jumped up and pumped my fist in the air, then promptly slipped sideways, whacking my knee into the coat rack.

**A/N part 2: Feedback will be loved and given homemade hot chocolate topped with whipped cream**.


	3. Chapter 3

**I'm sick and I haven't edited this well. I'm sure mistakes abound, but I felt like posting anyway. I apologise in advance. **

**Oh, and I own nothing. Not Twilight. Not Mastermind. Not even a box of Count Chocula (I went for Cinnamon Toast Crunch instead – was it a good choice?).**

Chapter 3

I was up at the crack of dawn the following morning. I'd realised the night before that Edward had neglected to mention what time he'd be picking me up, and I had no number to call him and ask. So I got up when Charlie left to fish, and hopped in the shower. I was determined to look at least halfway decent today, though next to Edward I would still be a troll.

Edward knocked on the door just as I was polishing off a large bowl of Count Chocula. I let him in and he followed me into the kitchen so I could clean up my breakfast mess before leaving. He picked up the box of Count Chocula from the counter and looked at me in amusement.

"Good?"

I licked my lips and patted my stomach. "Just like Mom used to make."

He shook his head, laughing, and placed it in its proper cupboard.

"I'll just go grab my bag and we can go."

He nodded his head and I ran upstairs, keeping my eyes on my feet the whole way.

xxx

As we drove down a long, winding, dirt road, the heavens opened up and rain poured out in torrents.

We reached the end of the road and Edward pulled the car to a stop. "Damn it," he grumbled. "They weren't calling for this today." He turned off the engine and ran his hands through his hair in frustration.

"There's a day when they _don't_ call for rain here?"

He laughed half-heartedly. "I wanted to take you to the waterfall; I guess we'll have to go another day." He turned sideways to look at me. "Do you want to hang out here?"

"Where is _here_ exactly?" We were parked in front of a magnificent, three-story white house, with large columns and a wrap-around porch. It looked so out of place in the middle of nowhere, the forest encroaching on all sides.

"_Here_ is my house," he replied with a smirk.

"It's gorgeous."

"Make sure you tell Esme," he said with a small laugh, "she remodelled it herself and never tires of the compliments."

He reached into the backseat and grabbed an umbrella from the floor. He opened his door and stuck the umbrella through it; it slid open with a 'shik'. And then he was outside in the deluge, running around to my side of the car. He held the umbrella overhead to shield me from the rain, getting himself wet in the process.

"Get under here with me," I demanded, pulling his arm. "You're getting drenched!" He allowed himself to be pulled under the shelter of the umbrella, and we made our way to the house. The scent of him in the rain was intoxicating -- like warmth and honey and fresh-cut grass. I closed my eyes and breathed deeply.

We hopped up onto the porch, safe from the rain. Edward closed the umbrella and shook it off. I looked back towards the car, and I could hardly make it out with the rain coming down like it was; it was literally bouncing off the driveway, making it appear as if it were raining from the ground as well as the sky.

"Damn, it's really coming down," I said, amazed. I had never seen such a rainfall in my life, having spent most of it in the desert.

"It's a good thing we got here when we did. I wouldn't want to be out driving in that."

He was certainly right about that; I doubted if I could see even ten feet in front of me.

He leaned the umbrella against the wall of the house, and opened the front door, beckoning me in.

The house was even more breathtaking inside. The rooms were wide open; I could see into what appeared to be the living room, with plush white carpet and furniture. The entire back wall of the house was a giant, seamless window, through which I could see the storm outside, and what looked like a wall of trees.

There was a slender woman with a wavy, caramel-coloured bob to my left, hard at work dusting a grand piano.

"Oh, Edward, sweetheart, is that you?" she asked without looking in our direction. "I'm so glad you're back; I was worried you were on the road in that mess." She motioned to the back window wall before turning to face us.

"Hi, Mom," Edward greeted her, and she beamed at him.

She turned her 100-watt smile in my direction. "Edward, you made a new friend!" she exclaimed.

He looked pained. "Mom, this is Bella. Bella, my mother, Esme."

"Hello," I said quietly.

"It's lovely to meet you, Bella," she gushed. She pulled me into a hug, and then kissed me delicately on the cheek.

"Um… you too." When she pulled away, still looking at me expectantly and holding both my hands in hers, I added, "Your house is beautiful."

"Oh, thank-you! A little hobby of mine."

Edward put his hand on my elbow – another shock ran through me at the contact -- and pulled me gently from his mother's grasp.

"Mom… we're just going to head upstairs."

"Oh, of course," she beamed at him again. "Let me know if you need anything."

With his hand still wrapped securely around my elbow, he turned me in the direction of the stairs.

As we walked up the stairs side by side, he leaned down and whispered in my ear, "I'll give you the grand tour once she stops hovering."

I paused for half a second, closing my eyes as his warm breath wafted across my face. _Delicious._

When we reached the third floor, he opened a door and pulled me through. He looked uncomfortable, his face a little pink. "I'm sorry about that. She can be a little…enthusiastic."

I chuckled. "To say the least. I feel like we just announced our engagement."

Edward grimaced. God, why did I say that aloud?

"She seemed really sweet, though," I backtracked. "She doesn't even come close to my mother in the crazy department, so don't worry."

He hesitated for a moment before speaking. "It's mostly because I…well… I don't generally bring any…friends around. Plus I called her mom, which always makes her…exuberant."

"And you don't usually?" I asked, confused. "Call her mom?" I called my parents by their first names, too, but not to their faces. Well, occasionally I did slip.

"I do it deliberately, because I know she wants me to. But not as a reflex, not without thinking about it, and that's what she really likes. She can always seem to tell the difference. They adopted me when I was 10, but it's still sometimes weird for me to say."

That explained why he didn't resemble either Dr Hotsy Totsy or Esme, other than in the way that they were all ridiculously attractive. I hadn't thought Dr Cullen could be the doctor Edward had been waiting to talk to that day in the emergency room, as he seemed far too young to be his father. "That explains why Doctor Ho- I mean Doctor Cullen looks so young then. And Esme as well."

"Yes. Carlisle was an intern at the hospital where my parents… I got to know him pretty well, and after they were gone, he began the adoption process immediately. Esme can't have children, and there I was – newly orphaned." He grimaced again. "That sounded bitter. I didn't mean to sound bitter. Esme and Carlisle are wonderful."

"They both seem really great," I agreed, trying to make my voice soothing. He was beginning to look decidedly uncomfortable, like he regretted confiding in me.

Even though we were practically strangers I felt like I knew him, and I wanted him to talk to me. I wanted nothing more than for him to be at ease telling me anything, to want to confide in me, even though his very presence caused butterflies – no, something bigger, bats maybe – to flap around constantly and uncomfortably inside of me, and I was almost perma-red whenever I looked into his face. But he didn't need to know of my insecurities, and I certainly didn't want him to court any of his own.

I smiled softly at him and put a hand on his arm. "So, is this your room?" I purposely changed the subject.

He bit the side of his lip and looked around distractedly. "Yeah, it's… yeah," he stuttered. He looked uneasy again, almost like he'd been caught doing something he shouldn't. He glanced at the closed door regretfully. _No means of escape?_

"It's so neat and tidy. My room looks like a cyclone hit it. Are you sure you're a guy?" I teased, trying to lighten his sudden tension.

He laughed quietly and relaxed his stance.

I walked boldly into the room. I hadn't been exaggerating; his room was very clean. The only things out of place were a stack of books on his bedside table, and a similar stack of CDs beside a very large and expensive looking sound system. The wall that it occupied was covered in shelves, holding hundreds of CDs.

"Wow, you have a lot of music," I said, lightly brushing my fingers over the edges of a row of jewel cases. They were arranged strangely, in no seeming order. He had _The Clash_ next to _Debussy_, followed by _Tom Waits_ and the original cast recording of _Jesus Christ Superstar_. "Eclectic tastes, too."

He grinned. "I like a bit of everything," he said with a shrug. "Want to listen to something?"

"Sure," I said, and pulled out the CD my finger was currently resting on. It turned out to be the Debuss_y_. He shrugged again and placed it in the CD tray.

The tinkling sound of a piano filled the room. I wandered over to a large, black leather sofa on the far wall and curled up on it, glad to have somewhere to sit besides the enormous, gilded bed that occupied the centre of the room.

A blush spread across my face as I regarded it. I pictured Edward wrapped in its golden coverings, his bronze hair spread messily all over the pillows. I wondered if it smelled of him – the sweet, masculine scent that had nearly melted me while under the umbrella.

He followed me over to the sofa, seating himself on the opposite end. He curled his feet up under him and turned towards me, regarding me intently.

"You like Debussy?" He sounded surprised. I realised I had been absently humming along with the familiar tune.

I blushed again. "Yes. It reminds me of my mom, actually. She plays it around the house a lot. Played it," I corrected myself.

"She doesn't anymore?"

"Well, um…I wouldn't know. Different house."

"Your mom moved? Is that why you came to live with Chief Swan?"

"Sort of." I hesitated, chewing on my bottom lip. I didn't really want to feed the Forks gossip-hounds – I hated the attention I got from the townsfolk whenever I showed up in public with Charlie – but Edward had said he wasn't like that, and I believed him. The sincerity and genuine curiosity was evident in his eyes. _His eyes_… When I stared into them my mouth fell open of its own accord, and everything just sort of spewed forth without my having meant it to.

"I moved here with Charlie so that Renée would be able to go to Florida. She would never have left Phoenix if I didn't, and I hated seeing her unhappy. She finally found someone to love, and far be from me to deny her that happiness. So she's in Florida with her new husband, and I'm stuck here with Charlie."

"But are you unhappy?" he asked quietly.

I thought for a moment before answering. I wasn't unhappy exactly – initially I had been merely resigned to my soggy fate, but spending time with Charlie hadn't turned out to be so bad. Our comfortable silences were just that – comfortable, and it was sometimes nice to be away from Renée's constant chatter.

And now, well, there was Edward.

"It's not so bad. Charlie doesn't hover the way my mom does, except when I stab myself and pass out on the kitchen floor, of course."

I held up my injured hand and he chuckled.

"And, well, the company's pretty good, too," I said with a grin.

He ran his fingers through his already messy hair, looking suddenly shy.

"The only thing I'm really dreading now is school," I told him in a weary voice.

He cringed slightly.

"Oh God, that bad? Should I go back to Phoenix?"

"It won't be _that bad_," he said with a chuckle. It sounded too forced to be reassuring. More seriously, he added, "please don't go back to Phoenix."

I was lost in the green of his eyes again, and I just nodded stupidly.

"It's still summer," he said, his voice taking on a new, more cheerful tone. "We don't have to think about any of that yet. We can still avoid while the avoiding's good."

I grinned at his enthusiasm. "That's the best idea I've heard in a long time."

We launched into a conversation about music again, which led to art, and then books – a subject we were both passionate about.

When Esme came to find us at lunch time, we were lying on our stomachs, stretched across the gold coverings of Edward's giant bed, laughingly taking turns reading from an enormous tome of Edward Gorey.

She brought us something to eat on a large, intricately designed wooden tray that probably cost more than all of the dishes in Charlie's kitchen put together.

I stumbled through _thank-yous_ and _you didn't have tos_, touched by her gesture. I wasn't used to being looked after in that way, or in any way, really.

She smiled sweetly at me, ignoring my embarrassing gushing, telling me that it was no problem and that she was so pleased that I was there. I was half expecting her to angrily question us as to why we were lying on Edward's bed with the door closed, but she only beamed at him as she had done when we arrived. She left us to eat after no more than a moment, closing the bedroom door behind her on her way out.

I glanced shiftily at Edward, red faced. "I'm not used to that – to being taken care of. Sorry."

He shrugged. "Everyone needs to be taken care of sometimes, Bella," he said. Then he smiled at me, and offered me a bottle of water.

xxx

Two delicious sandwiches, two slices of decadent chocolate cake, and one conversation about retro board games later, I found myself standing with Edward in front of the guest room closet. It was stacked from floor to ceiling with board games and software boxes.

"Lady's choice."

"Do you seriously think that I can't beat you at Mastermind?" I taunted him.

"Yep."

I snorted at his presumption.

"For the simple fact that no one ever has," he said smugly.

"Then break it out, Smugward. I'll wipe that smirk right off your face."

"All right," he sighed, grinning. "If you insist. But try not to cry too hard when you don't win."

"Hmmph," I said, crossing my arms over my chest.

He turned to his side and extended his arms, reaching towards the topmost shelf of the closet. His shirt hiked up, exposing a sliver of his taut stomach and the pale curve of his hipbone. I momentarily forgot to be jokingly vexed with him. I forgot where I was, who I was, hell I forgot to even _breathe_.

"Bella?"

Shit, he was talking to me. "Huh?" I answered stupidly.

"Is something wrong?" His brow was furrowed in confusion.

"No," I squeaked. "I mean – Mastermind," I motioned to the box in his hand. "Let's go play Mastermind."

"Okay," he said. He looked like he was worrying for my sanity. He turned around and walked towards the door.

I had been so preoccupied with the incredible beauty that was Edward's face, that I had barely noticed the perfection that was his body. But in the wake of the Tummy Incident, I was certainly taking notice.

His t-shirt was fitted, stretched tight over his wide shoulders and showing off every curve and dip of his back. The jeans he wore were riding low on his slender hips, but they hugged the curve of his ass. _Sweet Jesus, what a perfect ass._

He turned abruptly. "What?"

_Oh, fuck, I said that out loud_. "I said, I'm gonna kick your ass," I told him, my voice sounding false, even to me.

He gave me another strange look. "In your dreams," he said, before turning back around.

"You have no idea," I whispered under my breath, and followed him down the hall.

xxx

"Ah! You have to be cheating!" Edward accused, pounding his fist on the dining room table.

We'd been playing for hours, and he had yet to figure out one of my patterns.

I smirked at him.

"Another," he demanded. He looked so adorable with the little crease of frustration between his eyes, how could I say no?

I sighed in mock exasperation, and set up another row of coloured pegs.

"You seriously usually win this game?" I asked him after four guesses, and none of them correct.

"Always. I always win this game," he corrected. "Until now." He glowered at me, but his expression slipped and underneath there was a smile. "How are you doing this? Odds are I would have figured out at least one by now. It's bizarre."

"Don't be mad that you can't master my mind, Edward," I teased. "Quit your whining and try harder."

"Are you trash talking during Mastermind?"

"Hell yes. Put your little pegs in, I dare you. You won't guess right anyway." I stuck my tongue out at him.

"A little competitive, are we?"

"This isn't Competitive Bella. She only really comes out to play when I get challenged to a game of _Risk_." I quirked an eyebrow at him.

"Well, well," he said with a laugh. "I guess I know what I'll be doing on the next rainy day."

"The _next_ rainy day? You mean tomorrow?"

He grinned. "It's actually supposed to be sunny tomorrow," he said, staring intently at his pegs. "If the forecasters aren't completely off again, do you want to go to the waterfall?"

"Definitely."

"And if they are, well, I may have to bring Competitive Bella out to play." He placed a blue peg in the board with flourish and smiled up at me.

"One right," I said in an offhand tone. He made a frustrated grumble and dropped his head down so that his chin was resting on his fist, his eyes almost level with the game board. The crease was back between his eyes, and his full bottom lip stuck out in an adorable pout.

"You'd better be prepared," I said with a sigh, and he looked up from the rows of pegs. "Competitive Bella is much more vicious than the Klutzy Bella, Red Bella and Foot-in-the-Mouth Bella you've become acquainted with over the last couple of days."

"Ah, well. I'm sure I'll be just as fond of her as I am of all your other personalities," he grinned. "I have to admit, I have a bit of a penchant for Red Bella; she's delightful."

I looked away as Red Bella put in her millionth appearance of the day.

The clock on the far wall chimed four times and I sighed, glaring in its general direction.

"I guess you probably need to get home?" he asked. He looked as reluctant as I felt, and this cheered me somewhat.

"Yeah, I should," I grumbled. "Otherwise Charlie will send out an All Points." I rolled my eyes.

Edward laughed. If only I were actually joking.

"Come on then," he pushed his chair out and stood from the table. "I'll drive you."

When I got to the door and began putting on my shoes, I realised I had forgotten my hoodie in Edward's room.

He waited at the door as I climbed the long staircase to retrieve it. As I started down a hall, I realised it didn't quite look the same as the one I'd walked down earlier in the day. There were more doors -- two on the left and three on the right -- and there was another at the end of the hall, which I was sure hadn't been there before. I had gotten off the staircase a floor too early. I turned quickly to head back the way I came, but as I passed a slightly open door, I heard Esme's voice.

"He was _laughing_, Carlisle," she whispered. "Loud, hearty, straight-from-the-toes laughter, the likes of which I've never heard come out of him. And Bella, she's such a _doll_."

"Bella, you say?" came a familiar man's voice. "Pretty little brunette with a bandaged hand?"

"Yes," Esme answered, sounding confused. "How did you know?"

Dr Cullen laughed. "I was the one who bandaged her. She's Charlie Swan's daughter, you know."

"Oh." She sighed. "So she'll be leaving at the end of the summer then," she said in a disappointed voice.

"Actually, she's moved here permanently. Charlie was telling me she was due to arrive last week. I've never seen him so animated; it's wonderful for him."

"Oh, I'm so glad," Esme said.

There was movement within. _Crap!_ I couldn't believe I'd just been eavesdropping on Edward's parents, no matter how inadvertently. I walked slowly towards the stairs, trying my damnedest to move silently, and went to get my hoodie.

When I finally met Edward at the door, he looked perplexed. "What took you so long?" he asked.

"I got lost," I admitted, face red yet again.

He chuckled and shook his head at me. "Come on, Mastermind. Let's get you home before Chief Swan charges me with kidnapping."

I followed him to the car, replaying Carlisle and Esme's conversation over in my head. Why had she been so surprised that Edward had been enjoying himself? She said that he never laughed. He seemed pretty jovial to me, at least most of the time. I shook my head; I needed to stop dwelling on it. At least I knew that she liked me -- that was a plus, even if the rest of it made me feel sort of strange and uncomfortable.

**For anyone who doesn't know it – Mastermind is an old board game (the version that was in my house as a kid was from the 70s, I have no idea when the game was originally released), the object of which is to guess the pattern that one player has made with his/her pegs behind a little partition. The player attempting to figure out the pattern has numerous chances to guess, being told after each try how many guessed colours were correct, and so on. I realise it would be difficult to lose so many games in a row, but I'm having fun with it, realistic or not. I had a dream about canon Edward and Bella playing Mastermind and Edward constantly losing and becoming frustrated, and I woke up highly amused, so I added it to this story.**

**Any comments/criticisms would be highly appreciated. : )**


	4. Toxicodendron rydbergii

**A/N: Yeah… so it's been ages since I updated this fic yet again. I apologise. I've had writer's block issues and things. Blah, you don't wanna hear it. Anyway, so I'm not completely happy with this one, but I'm posting it, because it's been far too long. Ugh, I need a beta for this story. And so… onwards...**

Chapter 4 - Toxicodendron rydbergii

The forecasters were surprisingly correct – the next morning I was awoken by the bright light of the sun streaming through my bedroom window.

Edward, true to his word, arrived at promptly 9 o'clock, wearing a smile as warm and bright as the sunshine. He looked amazing in his plain white t-shirt and dark grey shorts, and he had the most adorable feet I'd ever seen peeking out of a pair of flip-flops.

"I hope you've got a swimsuit on under that," he said, before looking sheepish. "Because there are warm pools near the waterfall, really great for swimming…"

I smirked.

"Er… it's supposed to be really warm today," he continued uncomfortably.

"Let's not waste it then," I said with a grin, and pulled Edward out to his car.

We followed the same route we had taken the day before, ending up in front of the Cullens' house.

"I thought we were going to the waterfall?"

"We are," he said simply, and jumped out of the car, running around to open my door. "Wait here, I'll be right back."

He ran into the house and returned a moment later, speaking with Esme, who had followed him to the front door. She gave me a wide smile and a wave, then handed a backpack to Edward and disappeared inside the house.

He walked towards me, pulling the bag onto his back. "Okay, all set. To the forest."

Forest? I panicked slightly. "We're not, um, hiking, are we?"

Edward chuckled. "Yeah, a bit. It's not too far, and the path is pretty beat down. I go there a lot." He studied my face for a second before adding, "don't worry, Bella, I won't let you hurt yourself."

I almost told him that I didn't intend to hurt _myself_, though I expected angry tree roots and loose boulders were well up to the job, but I bit my tongue and followed after him without complaint.

He led the way behind the house and into the back yard, if it could be called such. It was too beautiful to be a yard, with rose bushes and benches and enormous trees everywhere. It looked more like an enchanted garden from a fairytale.

Edward smiled at my awed expression. "Esme again."

"She is a very talented woman."

He nodded his head. "Indeed she is."

"Do you ever just hang out back here, in amongst the flowers? I would love to write out here."

"What do you write?"

I blushed. That was something I'd never confided in anyone, and it had just slipped out so easily with Edward. "Short stories, poetry, things like that."

"I'd love to read something sometime."

I nodded stupidly, and then bit my lip. Would I be comfortable allowing that? No one had _ever_ read any of my writing before.

We passed through Esme's garden and crossed a small wooden bridge over a roaring river. There was a path worn through the trees, but it was faint. I could see many large roots erupting from the ground, and I steadied myself in preparation. I would have to carefully watch my feet the entire way. I hoped the distance was short as Edward had said, or I was in for one hell of a stiff neck.

"So, what else do you do in your spare time?" Edward asked, exiting the bridge and coming to walk beside me.

"Read mostly. Not a lot of bad things can happen to us clumsy people reading books – paper cuts are about the worst of it."

He chuckled and ran a hand through his hair, sending the smell of sandalwood wafting towards me. I breathed deeply, my eyes nearly falling closed. And then I stumbled, catching my toe on a root.

"Fuck!" I growled. Edward's right hand shot out and grabbed my arm before I made contact with the ground.

"Careful there," he said. I could hear the grin in his voice without looking up at him.

"Hmph," I muttered. "Thanks."

"You really are clumsy, huh?"

I looked over and rolled my eyes at him, then quickly snapped them back to the "path". Fucking trees, they were obviously out to get me.

"What's the worst injury your clumsiness has ever incurred?"

"Er – when I cracked my left femur." That had been hell; it had taken forever to heal.

Edward looked aghast. "How the hell did you do that? Were you in a car accident?"

I felt my face colour. "I fell out of a tree," I mumbled, embarrassed.

"Why would you even be in a tree?"

"I dunno, it seemed like a good idea at the time. I was in northern California with Charlie. It was a _big_ tree. It suffices to say, I've never been in a tree since."

"I should think not," he was shaking his head at me, but wearing a wide grin.

"If you could visit any one place in the world, where would it be?"

"Um… that's a difficult one. England, I guess. Most of my favourite authors are English."

"Who are your favourites?"

"Jane Austen, Shakespeare, John Keats, Robert Browning, Mary Shelley… I could go on and on."

"You like the classics." It was a statement this time, instead of a question.

I nodded my head without looking his way, not wanting to get caught up in his face and trip again.

"What's you favourite food?"

"Twizzlers."

"Twizzlers aren't food," he said in disgust. "They're sugar, and possibly even partly plastic, but they definitely aren't food."

I shrugged my shoulders and grinned. "What can I say, I love sugar."

"Yes, I do remember your God-awful cereal choices. A dietician would be appalled."

I stuck my tongue out maturely.

"What's your favourite colour?"

At this question, I blushed. I'd nearly blurted out "green", though my favourite colour had always been indigo. Somehow, since meeting Edward, green appealed to me more than any other colour. I found myself pulling anything made of green fabric off the racks when shopping, making spinach pasta instead of regular, hell, I'd even bought myself a green toothbrush.

He seemed confused by my pause. "What?" he questioned.

"Um… green," I finally answered in a quiet voice.

"Why are you blushing? That's the simplest question I've even asked."

I chewed on my bottom lip, wondering if I should answer him truthfully, or try to come up with some plausible lie. But that would take too long and he was already regarding me strangely.

I motioned to his eyes and quickly turned mine back towards the ground.

"What?" he asked again.

I sighed. "Your eyes," I almost whispered. "It's the colour of your eyes."

"Oh," was his only reply.

I was worried that my obvious attachment to him had made him uncomfortable when he didn't say anything for a moment, but then he fired off another question as if nothing odd had occurred.

"What's your favourite movie?"

"Are you writing a book?" I teased him.

"Well," he said, throwing me a quick grin, "I do plan on writing my autobiography one day, and I expect that you will figure prominently within its pages."

I laughed, shaking my head. "Even when you're being an absolute smartass you manage to say the perfect things."

"It's a gift."

Edward continued his game of 20 questions throughout our walk. When he informed me that our destination was right around the next bend, I had only admitted to two slightly embarrassing things, and had only tripped on three evil tree roots and one large rock.

I heard the waterfall before we'd arrived at the clearing. I rushed ahead of Edward, anxious to see it.

He laughed at me and yelled from behind, warning me not to trip. I was only half paying attention to him by this time, for I had come out of the trees into a large clearing, surrounded on two sides by what appeared to be a rock wall, but what I assumed was actually a hill. There was a small waterfall rushing down an opening in the rock, pouring its foaming water into a crystal clear pool, which was about 20 feet in diameter.

There were several other small pools near this one, but not interconnected. They must have been fed from beneath the ground.

The entire clearing just screamed "green": from the brilliant grass, to the moss covered rock, to the vines that clung to the trees and the hill, cloaking the waterfall from the outside world. It was beautiful – like a miniature of the mermaid's lagoon in Neverland.

The water looked deliciously inviting, and I was sweaty from trudging through the woods, so I immediately began to peel off my outer clothes, ready to jump in.

I turned around to find Edward and caught him staring at me, open-mouthed. He looked uncomfortable at having been discovered mid-ogle. I felt the heat rise beneath the surface of my skin, but I willed it away. I would make light of the situation, joke about it. I didn't want him to think I was mad. I was flattered by the look on his face.

"Were you just staring at my ass?" I teased, throwing my jeans onto the grass and removing my t-shirt. "I mean, it's okay if you were."

I glanced over at Edward; he still looked mortified. Crap. "I do it, too," I reassured him. _You're not the only pervert in this forest._ "I check you out, like, Grocery Granny style." I widened my eyes and waggled my eyebrows playfully.

He laughed a little and ran his hands through his hair, shaking his head. "You are never going to let me live that down, are you?"

"Nope," I said, popping the "p". I threw him a quick wink and ran haphazardly into the waterfall pool.

And I immediately shrieked. It was fucking _cold_.

"Er… that one is cold," Edward informed me.

I glared in his direction. "Thanks for the warning."

"Well, to be fair, you didn't really give me a chance. And also, I wanted to see the look on your face."

"Get your ass in here," I said between the chattering of my teeth. "I don't want to be the only idiot standing in freezing cold water."

He stood grinning at me for a moment; I thought he was seriously going to ignore my request, but then he pulled his shirt off and flung it in the grass and stepped out of his sandals. I forgot to be cold the moment I saw his chest -- until he spoke of course, and I remembered where and who I was.

"I can't believe I'm letting you talk me into this. I've been in there before, and it's frigid. Really, the other pools are much more pleasant."

"Get in here. Now."

He heaved a sigh and walked to the edge of the water. He gingerly stuck his big toe in, and then pulled it back with a hiss. "How are you standing it?"

"It's not so bad once you're in," I lied.

"Then why are you holding on to yourself like that?"

I peeled my arms from around my torso and swam closer to Edward. "See, not so bad." I fought with myself to keep from shivering.

"Fine." He ran into the water as I had done, sucking in an enormous breath and nearly choking on it once the water level rose towards his nether regions. I cringed for him; that part had been unpleasant indeed.

"Fu-uck."

"Pretty much," I agreed. "Once under the fall then into a warmer pool?"

Edward nodded, rubbing his hands over his arms to try and warm himself.

I giggled at his goose bumps, then turned tail and headed for the cascading water. It was even colder than the pool, which at least had the sun warming it for the past several hours. Wherever the waterfall was coming from, it was freezing cold.

I stuck my head under it first, and then plunged forward with the rest of my body. When the hard stream of water hit my chest I jumped out of the way with a loud shriek. "Ah, that's cold on the nips!"

Edward chuckled from close behind me. "On the nips, huh?"

I was suddenly no longer cold. Blood rushed to the surface of my skin. Where the hell was my internal filter when I needed it? I turned around and tried to smile, hoping it looked better than it felt. I caught Edward's eyes flickering towards my chest, and shot a hand out to cover my protruding nipples. His Adam's apple bobbed as he swallowed.

"Er… my turn I guess," he said quietly. He swam in the direction of the waterfall and plunged underwater, coming up beneath the steady stream.

I stood watching him, mesmerised. He was so beautiful. The water was cascading over his shoulders as he moved his head from side to side, as if he were taking a shower. He pulled himself out of the rushing water, wiping his hair out of his eyes.

"You were right," he said with a shiver. "Cold on the nips."

I snorted a laugh and Edward grinned at me. "Let's get out of here," he said between chattering teeth.

We climbed out of the waterfall pool and into another smaller one, which was far warmer. We swam around and splashed each other childishly; it was great fun. When I complained that I was starting to get all pruney, Edward asked if I was hungry. He jumped out of the water and grabbed the backpack Esme had given him, and got to work setting up a picnic, complete with blanket.

"Did your mom make this for us?"

Edward nodded, keeping his eyes on the Tupperware containers he was pulling out of the bag. When a drip of water from my hair splattered on the top of his head, he turned and glanced at me. "Here," he said with a grin, and handed me a towel.

I wrapped it around myself and sat down beside him on the blanket. He handed me a plastic plate and a bottle of water, then began removing the lids off of several containers, which he offered to me in turn. I took half of a chicken sandwich, some carrots and cheese, and settled back to eat.

"What's in this one?" I asked, picking up the only container that was still closed. Something rattled around inside.

"My favourite cookies. They're oatmeal chocolate chip with macadamia nuts. Esme's secret recipe."

I pulled on the container's lid with all my might. I felt it finally let up, but it came off too quickly, and the cookies went flying onto the ground and into the water.

"Oops."

Edward looked unbelievably sad, like I'd knocked his kitten into the pond as opposed to his favourite cookies.

"They were the last ones," he sighed.

I tried to suppress my grin, but I just couldn't. "I'm sure Mommy will bake you some new ones."

"Hmph." He took a violent bite of his sandwich and glared at the ground.

After lunch, I helped Edward pack everything back into Esme's magic bag, then headed into the trees to change out of my bathing suit. I hadn't thought to bring underwear with me, but going commando would be better than being chafed by the wet lycra, which was happening right at that moment. I peeled the soaking material from my body and pulled on my shorts and t-shirt. While attempting to put my leg into my shorts, I stumbled. I was saved from falling by a prickly bush – I didn't know whether to curse at it or thank it. As it turned out, I was grateful for its presence, as it was full of plump, delicious looking raspberries. A snagged a handful and headed back towards Edward with a smile on my face.

I walked back through the trees to find him lounging by one of the warm pools, intent in his study of a green bush. A horribly familiar green bush. One that I had encountered during my early torturous fishing experiences with Charlie.

"Edward, don't touch that!" I hollered, running towards him and waving my hands frantically, effectively dropping all of the raspberries that I'd picked.

I tripped over my own feet and lay sprawled on the ground for a moment, before regaining my faculties and pulling myself up. I crawled the rest of the way to Edward on my hands and knees.

He sat frozen in place, staring at me strangely, his eyes wide, not saying a word.

"Poison Ivy," I gasped. "Don't touch."

His eyes widened further and he pulled his hand away from the leaves he had just been fingering. "Oops," he said.

"Oops?" I shook my head incredulously. I pulled myself closer to him, brushing the dirt from my clothes and straightening my ponytail. "Your dad is a doctor and you live _here_, how can you not know what poison ivy looks like?"

He shrugged his shoulders. "I've never actually come across it before now."

"And why in the world did you touch it? Most people brush up against it accidentally, not reach out and stroke it."

"It's pretty. It called to me."

"It's _poisonous_."

He studied me for a moment before looking down at his hands. "Sometimes we're drawn to the things we should stay away from," he said quietly.

Stay away from? Was he talking about me? Was I something that he thought he should stay away from? I swallowed, and forced myself to use a light tone. "And what exactly is that supposed to mean, Tales from the Cryptic?"

He shrugged again and looked sadly back at his hands. "My hand itches." He sounded like a little boy.

"Crap, already? How long were you being intimate with the poison ivy before I banshee shrieked at you?" That got me a smile.

"Minute or two? How ever long it took you to change in the bushes."

I sighed in annoyance. "Where is a spring of calamine lotion when you need one." Another little smile, that was good. "We'll just have to improvise, won't we? Come here."

I strode over to the side of the pond, kicking under the water with my toe to dredge up some good mud.

I motioned for him to sit down and hold his hands out in front of him so I could see how bad the damage was. Small red welts were erupting all over both palms and even between his fingers.

"It's pretty bad," I mumbled. "Rinse your hands and I'll see if I can help with the itching."

I sunk my hand under the water and got a fistful of mud and began painting both of Edward's hands in a thick coat.

"This will help?" He looked unconvinced.

I shrugged. "Works on bee stings."

"But those aren't really itchy, though, are they?"

I glared up at him and didn't answer.

"Hairy vine, no friend of mine," I sing-songed.

"What?"

"Haven't you ever heard the little rhymes before?"

"Um… no. Poison ivy rhymes?"

"Yeah, they teach them to kids. 'Leaves of three, let it be. Leaves of four… roll around in it if you want to'."

That earned me a full-blown laugh. "I don't think you're remembering that properly for some reason."

"Don't think so, huh? Well, I only memorised the part that tells me to STAY AWAY FROM THE FREAKIN' POISON IVY!"

He grinned crookedly. Thank God, moody Edward seemed to have vacated the premises for the time being. "Touché."

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot, what with your groping poisonous shrubbery and all, but I found us some dessert in the bushes. I dropped them; I'll go get more."

I leaned down and rinsed the mud off my hands, pretending not to notice the confused expression on Edward's face.

He didn't ask me what I was talking about, so I scampered off into the trees without saying another word. I found the raspberry bushes and picked as many as I could reach, using my t-shirt as a makeshift bowl to hold them all.

Edward had settled himself in the shade of a large spruce tree, as far from the poison ivy as the clearing would allow. He was stretched out with his head resting against its trunk, studying his mud-coated hands with a deep frown. I wandered over and sat down next to him, holding my shirt out, careful not to squish the berries.

"How are they?" I asked, motioning towards his hands with my head, since my own hands were occupied.

"The itching is nearly gone, actually, but they're burning a bit."

"Do you want to head back?" I was being selfish with talk of dessert; of course he wouldn't want to stay here in the middle of nowhere when he was so uncomfortable. I just didn't want our day to be over, but what he needed was to see his father. All I had done was coat the poor thing's hands in mud, how long could that possibly help?

"Nah, it's not that bad." He sat up and looked down into my berry filled lap. "What was this you said about dessert?"

"Well, it was the least I could do after I ruined your mommy cookies."

"Shut up," he deadpanned. "Tell me about these little berries you've got here."

"I found a bunch of bushes when I was changing. Want some?"

"Hmmm… are you sure they're not poisonous?"

"Edward, they're raspberries."

"Raspberries you say? I thought you could only buy those at the supermarket in those little plastic tubs. Silly me, you think living _here_ I would know."

"Smart ass."

He grinned and reached out a hand to take some berries.

I pulled my shirt away abruptly. "No way! Keep your poison ivy hands to yourself!"

"Then how am I supposed to…?" He reached out a hand again and I turned at the waist to keep him away.

I picked up a berry and held it up between my thumb and index finger. "Open wide," I told him.

He rolled his eyes but did as he was told. I plopped the berry into his mouth and grabbed another. "Good?"

"Mmm… yeah, thanks Mommy."

I fed him another and he chewed it theatrically. "I think I can handle more than one at a time."

I plopped a couple into my own mouth as I regarded him. I shrugged my shoulders and gathered a handful, then pushed them into his face. Only about a third of them made it into his mouth, the others were crushed into his cheek, chin and some fell to the ground.

He sat staring at me dumbly for a moment before stuttering, "What was that for?"

I shrugged again, plopping a few more raspberries into my mouth. "I dunno. Felt like it." I looked away to try and hide the grin that was threatening to break over my face, only to feel Edward's weight come crashing into me, toppling me over onto the grass.

My eyes had snapped closed automatically; it was instinct with me, having fallen so much in my life -- I found that it was better not to see what was about to happen most of the time. When I opened them his face was only inches from mine and he was wearing a shit-eating grin. It faded quickly, however, and he pulled himself off of me, his attention focusing on his hands.

"They're starting to hurt more," he said. "I should probably get back to see Carlisle."

I nodded and forced myself back into a sitting position, my head a little woozy. He was looking towards the waterfall, chewing on his bottom lip. He seemed upset again. "You squished the berries," I muttered jokingly, trying to lighten his mood for the zillionth time that day. "They're all over both of us."

He looked down at his shirt, brushing the back of his hand over the large maroon stain. He shrugged his shoulders and forced a smile. "Come on," he said, and stood up. He reached out a hand to help me, but withdrew it quickly with an apologetic look.

"No worries, I can manage," I said. I wanted to eat my words a second later when I stumbled.

He smirked at me and motioned to the backpack on the ground. "Help me get that on my back, would you?"

I lifted up the bag containing the remnants of our picnic lunch, and held the straps out for Edward to slip his arms through. When it was settled on his back and I had my bundle of wet clothes, we set off towards the path.

We walked in silence most of the way home. Once in awhile he would ask me another of his random questions that he hadn't gotten to on our way in to the waterfall, but otherwise conversation was at a minimum. For the most part our silence was companionable, but I would occasionally catch his eyes flicker towards me and a worried expression would cross his face. I wasn't sure if I wanted to know what was going on in that pretty little head of his one moment, and was tempted to come right out and ask him the next. His bizarre mood swings were driving me crazy.

We crossed the bridge in no time; it was funny how the way back always seemed to take much less time. We walked through Esme's garden where we came across Dr. Hotsy Totsy, who sitting on a bench reading a book.

"Carlisle, I had a little accident," Edward said; he sounded extremely embarrassed. I hoped he hadn't taken what I had said about the poison ivy to heart.

Dr. Cullen jumped from his seat and began looking over Edward worriedly. "Are you hurt?"

Edward was shaking his head, looking confused at Carlisle's seeming panic. "Not really. Um… it's just…"

"Is that blood?" He reached up and brushed a thumb over Edward's chin.

"Er… that's just berry juice," I offered. I grinned sheepishly at Edward's glare.

Edward held his hands up in front of him. "I…. er…"

"Edward learned all about poison ivy. The hard way." He threw another irritated glare my way.

Dr. Cullen's ashen eyebrows rose towards his hairline. "Oh. Well, let's get inside and have a look then," he mumbled, before turning and leading the way to the back door.

We followed Dr. Cullen into the kitchen, where he stopped in front of the large sink and reached for Edward's hands. "Only here?" he asked.

Edward nodded his head and stared at his hands resting on his father's.

"Good thinking with the mud," Dr. Cullen was muttering. He twisted Edward's hands one way and then the other, before turning on the tap and pushing them under the stream of water. Edward hissed at the sensation.

"Bella got the idea from treating bee stings or something," he said between clenched teeth. His hands beneath the layer of mud were red and raw looking.

"Different problem, sure, but it's soothing, so basically the same principle. Good job, Bella." He turned his sharp eyes away from Edward's tortured hands and smiled at me.

I felt my face flush as I attempted to return his smile. I wrenched my eyes away from Dr. Cullen's gaze and rested them on Edward; his brow was furrowed, but he wasn't looking at me.

"This is the worst case of contact dermatitis I've ever seen from poison ivy. What were you doing, Edward?"

"I…umm… Well, I didn't know it was poison ivy. I was kind of picking at the flowers and little berries when Bella noticed." His face was nearly as red as mine. I would have felt bad if it wasn't so hilarious.

"And now you're going to have to give back your hazardous plants Boy Scout badge," I told him with a grin.

My grin widened when he shot me yet another glare. Dr. Cullen's back was to me as he searched through a drawer, but I noticed his shoulders shaking with silent laughter. He turned back towards us and began to pat Edward's hands dry with a small towel. He was trying, and failing, to suppress a smile. "I'll just go and find some calamine lotion."

"Nice face," Edward muttered once his father had left the room.

"You like that? It's my 'Told Ya So' face."

He studied me intently for a moment, pretending to contemplate my expression. "Perfect mixture of smug and smart-alecky; it looks a lot like your Mastermind face."

"Your face looks kinda like your 'I-lost-at-Mastermiind-50-times-in-a-row-Oh-The-Humanity' face, too, now that you mention it."

"Hmm, so you think you can best me in a battle of wits now, do you?"

"Oh, Edward, I've got to take my victories where I can, haven't I? Cause there is no way I could ever beat you in a physical contest, like, say, a foot race… or a beauty pageant."

He rolled his eyes. "Oh yes, don't you dare try and steal my tiara," he deadpanned.

I poked him playfully in the side and he jumped and squealed. _Squealed?_ I cackled internally. He was ticklish.

"Come on, Miss America, let's clean the raspberry juice off your face."

"I think I can handle that myself…" he started.

I raised my eyebrows.

His eyes fell to his blotchy hands and he bit the side of his lip. "Guess not."

"Now, now, come and let Nurse Bella work her magic." I winked at him and grasped his elbow. Looking into his face, I immediately regretted my teasing. He looked flushed and the annoying little crease was between his eyes again.

I dropped his arm and looked away from him, sighing.

I was one part relieved, one part frustrated when Dr. Cullen came back into the kitchen at that moment, carrying several little bottles. He immediately set to work rubbing Edward's hands down with alcohol, before rinsing them yet again. I winced with Edward throughout the entire process – I'd had enough experiences with raw skin and rubbing alcohol to know exactly how badly it stung.

"I'll put the calamine on for now, but let me know if it isn't helping and I'll go into town and get you some hydrocortisone, okay?"

The rest of the afternoon was quiet; we sat around watching TV, waiting to see if the calamine lotion would be enough to combat the itching of Edward's hands. It was comfortable, however, and I was sad to have to leave when the time came.

Carlisle – as he insisted I call him -- drove me home after giving Edward's hands another calamine lotion bath. After my initial misgivings and discomfort, I began to feel at ease in his presence, and we fell into easy conversation.

Charlie's cruiser was parked in the driveway when we arrived at the house. _Shit_. He was peeking through the front window; he'd likely been freaking out over my unknown whereabouts.

I said a quick goodbye to Carlisle and rushed inside to placate my father. He assaulted me with his fussing before I had even shut the door behind me.

"Why did Dr. Cullen drop you off? Are you all right? Were you hurt? Where have you been?"

"Dad –" I tried to cut him off between questions, but he just wouldn't be stopped. "Dad, I'm fine. I was hanging out at the Cullens' today for a while, and Dr. Cullen drove me home after Edward sorta fell into some poison ivy and couldn't. No big deal."

"Edward? How do you know him?" he asked in a suspicious tone. I was suddenly well aware of how it felt to be questioned by the Chief of Police; all Charlie needed was a spotlight to shine in my eyes.

"We met at the hospital the other day. He's really nice."

"Uh huh."

"Dad, he's my friend. Aren't you glad I made a friend here?"

"Of course, Bells. I've got nothing against the kid; he's never caused me a lick of trouble. But there are girls here in town you could be friends with."

I rolled my eyes and headed in the direction of the stairs. "Okay, Dad. I'm just going to go change and I'll be right down to make dinner."

~*~

Edward and I were lying in a field of wildflowers. He was shirtless, wearing only his grey shorts and a pair of flip-flops. He had the mud on his hands, and I was feeding him raspberries.

As I held out a berry for him, he leaned forward and took it with his teeth, only to place it on my breastbone and lick it off. I shuddered and felt the low rumble of his laughter against my shoulder. He lifted his head and opened his mouth for another; this time he placed it in the hollow of my throat. He sucked it from my skin and I whimpered, the fingers of my left hand clutching at the grass.

I placed another raspberry between his teeth. He hooked his arms around my waist and, careful not to touch me with his hands, he dragged me on top of him with his elbows and forearms. I dropped the remaining berries and helped him along, pulling myself over his body. He grinned up at me, partially squishing the raspberry with his teeth, its juice running in a single stream down his chin. He leaned forward until his lips were level with mine and pushed the berry into my mouth with his tongue. I wrapped my own tongue around it, the bittersweet flavour flooding my mouth, and then bridged the remaining distance between us, capturing his lips with mine.

I slid my lips up over his jaw and down to his throat, the salty taste of his skin mingling with the juice. He tried to draw me closer, his elbows digging into my hips. He gave up after a moment and huffed quietly against my hair, frustrated by his incapacitated hands. I felt him shift beneath me, then his bare foot slid slowly up my calf and over my thigh. He slung his leg over my hip, resting its weight on my butt, pushing my body flush against his. I moaned loudly and sank my teeth into the skin of his neck that I had just been kissing. His hips bucked against mine as he hissed. He placed his hands on either side of my face and pulled my mouth back to his.

_Wait, his hands?_ The mud was gone; where had the mud gone?

"Bells?"

_Fuck, Charlie._ I rolled off of Edward and frantically searched the small meadow for my father.

"Bells, are you all right? You were moaning in your sleep."

It was dark all of a sudden; when had it gotten dark? The flowers were different -- flat and colourless. _Oh_.

I pulled my face out of my balled up floral sheets and grunted at my father. I was grateful that the sky had clouded over again so there was no bright moon shining in the window to give away my flushed appearance. "Sorry, nightmare."

"All right?" he asked again.

"Uh huh."

He nodded his head and left the room. I heard him shuffling back to his own room down the hall.

How fucking embarrassing. I only hoped that my moans hadn't been obviously sexual. Had Charlie expected to find Edward there in the room with me? He couldn't have, otherwise he would have looked around, wouldn't he?

If Renée had walked in on me having a dirty dream, sure I would have been horrified, but we would have laughed about it and it would have been quickly forgotten, but Charlie?

_Fuck. _

I burrowed under my blankets, waiting for the heat in my face and the pounding of my heart to subside so I could make an attempt at going back to sleep. I somehow doubted it was a real possibility.

How in the hell was I going to face my father in the morning?

**Feedback of any sort would be much appreciated. I'm really unsure about this chapter. Many thanks. :)**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Another age before a new chapter… I apologise. I've been working on a story for the Twilight Big Bang over at LJ and have been ignoring all of my WiPs. I will hopefully be finished the BB fic soon so I can get back to this and other stories.**

Chapter 5

I spent the next four days with Edward, hanging around and accomplishing next to nothing in various locales. He had officially been introduced to Charlie, who glared as best he could but had to admit that Edward was a "nice enough boy" and that befriending the son of Dr. Cullen certainly wasn't a bad idea -- handy place for me to be if I had one of my "incidents". Sadly, he was right.

On Thursday Edward called instead of turning up, telling me abruptly that he couldn't see me, then promptly hanging up without explaining. I tried to keep myself from being hurt by his rudeness, but it had stung. He'd been behaving far less standoffish since the day of the poison ivy, and I had hoped he was over whatever it was that had been bothering him. Apparently, he was not.

I spent the day attempting to catch up on the housework I had been neglecting, but my thoughts drifted continuously to Edward. I wondered where he was and what he was doing, but mostly I wondered who he was doing whatever he was doing _with_. I was officially pathetic. Sometimes, when he would blush or stammer after mistakenly touching me or say something that could be construed a certain way, I would think that perhaps he thought of me the way I thought of him, but the next minute he would be cold and acting as if I was bothering him just by being in his presence. I didn't understand him at all. I should have brought it up, asked what his problem was, but I didn't. I was too afraid he would stop coming over, stop spending time with me at all. I craved his company too much already.

I chucked the shirt I had been trying to fold into the basket with a sigh. I needed a distraction. I almost wished I had a girlfriend to discuss the situation with. No, I decided, best to keep it to myself. I didn't know Edward well enough to be pining after him the way I was doing; anyone would think I was even crazier than _I_ thought I was – and that was plenty crazy.

I dreamt of Edward and the raspberries again that night – it had become a recurring theme with me. Luckily Charlie hadn't interrupted again since the first time – the dream kept getting more and more involved. Edward had been seconds away from taking my virginity last night, before I had fallen out of my bed, putting an abrupt and painful end to my nocturnal fantasy.

Almost as if he sensed my inappropriate dreams about him, Edward sounded extra irritable when he called me on Friday morning, asking if I wanted to hang out.

"I guess so, since you asked so nicely," I answered sharply.

He was silent for a moment; I began to think he'd hung up until I heard him sigh.

"I'm sorry, Bella," he said, sounding chastised. "I didn't mean to be abrupt. Do you mind if I come over?"

"Of course I don't mind. I'd like that very much."

"Okay," he said, then added, "you shouldn't." He said the last part so quietly I barely made it out. He likely hadn't meant for me to hear. Great, now he was kicking himself for being rude to me. I shouldn't have said anything. He was probably just having a bad day.

"I'll see you soon?" I asked him.

"Yeah, I'll be right over. Do you need anything?"

"Well… maybe Hazel's hot chocolate?"

He laughed softly. "Hazel's hot chocolate it is. See you soon."

I hung up the kitchen phone and continued with the breakfast dishes. I wondered if Charlie realised exactly how much time Edward was spending alone with me under his roof. Not that anything interesting was going on, I sighed to myself. I was glad he didn't know just the same.

Edward arrived in no time with two steaming cups of our favourite hot chocolate. We settled into our comfortable routine of watching movies and mocking each other all morning.

We ate lunch, and I did some laundry, which he insisted on helping me fold, blushing deeply when a pair of my underwear detached themselves from Charlie's shirt and landed in his lap. I teased him, as was the norm, even though I was just as mortified as he was.

The day was passing as the previous ones had done, but something felt off. We were playing our parts, but without our usual comfort, our usual candour. Something was up with Edward. He always had moments of pause, moments where I could tell he was over-thinking something, though I hadn't the slightest idea what – but today, it was worse than usual. His laughter was forced, his smiles quick to disappear, and when he didn't think I was watching him, he looked so lost and uncomfortable. I didn't know what to do, what to say to him, so I said nothing. Instead I mocked him for being frightened of women's underwear, which he didn't seem to find the least bit amusing.

We watched _Dead Alive_, and I got so caught up in the zombie decapitations via lawnmower that I didn't notice the time. I was late getting dinner started for Charlie. Edward jumped up with me and said he would help.

I put the pork chops I'd marinated in the oven, and put some baby potatoes on to boil, before pulling various vegetables out of the crisper to make a salad. Edward washed as I chopped, though he fought for several minutes for the reversal of our roles. He was nervous for a repeat of my slice/faint performance that had brought us together in the emergency room. I shook my head and told him that had been a fluke, and then began slicing the mushrooms he'd just passed to me.

He paused at the sink, lettuce in hand. "Do you want to go swimming at the waterfall tomorrow? It's supposed to be sunny."

"No can do. I've got a hot date with your dad."

"What?" he snapped.

_Whoa, overreaction. _"Uh… removal of stitches, remember? Jeez, relax. Do you want to come with me?"

"I don't think so," he replied in a haughty tone, his face pinched. What the hell was his problem? I was always making jokes.

I stopped chopping the tomato and studied him. Something was really bothering him, and the dark circles under his eyes gave away his lack of sleep. That did it -- I was saying something. I sucked in a breath and readied myself.

"What's up with you today? You're moodier than a 13 year old girl with her period."

"Nothing… I just…" he heaved a sigh and turned off the water.

"Edward, you can tell me you know."

He shrugged his shoulders and threw me a "it's nothing" look. I didn't buy it. "I just had a bad day yesterday."

I took a bite of a baby carrot and watched the false smile slide off his face. I could pretend just as well as he could. I started chopping again. "Where were you anyway?" I asked.

"Nowhere," he answered too quickly. "With my parents for the most part."

"For the most part?"

"Yes." His tone of voice made it clear that the topic was closed for discussion.

I raised my eyebrows. "O.K.," I enunciated. "Moving on then. I can probably sneak away later in the day after my appointment. Charlie will likely be fishing, or at Billy's."

"You don't have to." He almost sounded hopeful.

"Edward, I want to. I want to spend time with you. I want to go to the waterfall. Now stop acting premenstrual and hand me that lettuce."

~*~

Charlie offered to skip fishing for the day to drive me to the hospital, but I adamantly refused. The last thing I needed was Charlie hovering, and I really wanted to spend the afternoon with Edward, whether that time was spent swimming or sitting around reading in silence. Charlie relented with very little argument; the fish hadn't been biting the weekend before, and he felt like he had catching up to do. I had emptied out some of the fish from the freezer, and that was bad in Charlie's books.

So I drove myself to the hospital. After only a short wait the pretty nurse from the day I met Edward led me in to a room to wait for Carlisle.

I was flipping through a pamphlet about depression when he entered the exam room and closed the door behind him.

"Bella," he said brightly, "lovely to see you again."

"You too, though I'd prefer a different set of circumstances."

He chuckled and reached for my bandaged hand. He wound the gauze off and examined the wound. "Looks good, we can definitely get rid of these today."

"Thank God, it's so itchy and annoying."

He set to work ridding me of the stitches while I looked away and tried to focus on anything but the weird pulling sensation.

"Did you see Edward yesterday?" he asked.

"Edward, yeah. We hung out a bit."

I glanced down to see his brow was furrowed. "How did he seem?"

"He was… well, he was a bit moody to be honest. I have no idea what I did, but I think he's pissed at me." _Ugh, I swore at Dr. Cullen._ "Er… sorry."

He smiled up at me. "You didn't do anything. Don't worry, Bella, it's me Edward's angry with, not you." He put all his tools aside and looked at me properly. "Sometimes he has a tough time directing his temper in the proper direction is all. Edward can be… difficult, but don't give up on him. He's worth the effort."

He nodded his head once and began to tidy his mess.

"I've already figured that one out. Quick learner."

He smiled warmly and squeezed my shoulder. "All finished."

I hopped down from the exam table and led the way to the door, Carlisle following after me, making notes on my chart. Once outside the room I turned to him to say goodbye.

"Are you making anything for the picnic?" he asked. "Edward mentioned that you like to cook."

_Picnic?_ "Picnic?"

"The town picnic. Surely your father mentioned it to you. He always barbeques."

"Er… not yet."

"Well, I'm sure he will. Hope to see you there! Esme is making desserts I think," he said absently. "Anyway, if you are going, try and convince my son to tag along, would you? He always avoids."

"You see this is why we get along so well. This avoiding thing is already sounding appealing, and it's the first I've even heard of the picnic."

"Goodbye, Bella," he said with a laugh, shaking his head fondly on his way down the hall.

~*~

I spent the afternoon with Edward, though it had clouded over by the time I left the hospital, so instead of going swimming, we hung around in Esme's garden. We figured it would be safer to stay near the house should we suddenly need to dash inside.

There was a little of the previous day's awkwardness hanging around the edges, but Edward seemed to be in somewhat better spirits. I brought up the impending town picnic that Carlisle had mentioned and Edward pulled a face.

"Definitely something to be avoided at all costs."

"That's what I suspected. Care to avoid it with me?" I asked.

"I would be much obliged. I'm used to avoiding it alone, it'll be a nice change."

"What should we do?"

"Best to clear out of town completely. Esme comes up with more and more devious plans to attempt to get me to mingle with the townsfolk every time there is a social gathering." He sat pondering for a moment. "We could go to Seattle."

"That sounds perfect; I'm in desperate need of a decent bookstore."

"It's a date," he said. He looked like he desperately wanted a response to his statement – whether he wanted me to agree or refute it I didn't know. Or perhaps he simply wished he could take it back.

"Once again – sounds perfect." I watched closely for his reaction; he turned his head away from me, but I caught a very quick glimpse of his smile.

~*~

As my luck would have it, Charlie also brought up the Town Picnic over dinner that night, as we were enjoying his catch of the day.

"Dr. Cullen said he told you about the Forks Annual Summer Picnic today," he said. Fucking parents – they were obviously conspiring.

"Dad, I'm sure it's great and all, but I'm not really one for crowds. Edward and I are heading to Seattle that day. I need school stuff and I'd really like to go to a bookstore that has a selection at least as large my own bookshelf."

"Come on, Bells, you have to come. Your old man always barbeques, and the whole town turns out. It's a real nice sense of community – something you missed out on living in Phoenix. I need you there to represent our family. Besides, the nice girls from your school will be there, you can make some friends."

"I've made a friend, Dad."

"One friend. You can make more."

"Dad, I –"

He swallowed a bite of fish and cut me off. "Speaking of – Alice Brandon is coming over tomorrow. She really wants to meet you."

"Wait… what?" I was about to protest, and loudly, when he continued.

"She's one of the town lawyers' daughter. Real sweet kid. She was at the station with her mother today and I invited her over. Said she'd be here about nine."

I popped a piece of potato into my mouth to keep it busy so I wouldn't utter the words that were on the tip of my tongue. _He's trying to be helpful; he's trying to be a good dad._

I'd made plans with Edward already, and now I would have to cancel them to make nice with Charlie's friend's daughter? And here I'd thought that Charlie wasn't the butting in type. He was worse than some old busybody – the next thing I knew he'd be trying to set me up with one of the town councilman's sons. I didn't like the way he was attempting to interfere with my relationship with Edward, and there wasn't even any relationship for him to interfere _with_. _Not yet_, I told myself, trying to be optimistic.

I chewed more forcefully. Charlie was purposefully avoiding my eyes. I glared at my plate and all but crammed the rest of my dinner into my face before stomping up the stairs to call Edward, muttering behind me that I would do the dishes later. Charlie -- sounding a little apprehensive at my tone and deservedly so, since it was his fault – called after me not to worry about it, he would clean up.

I grabbed the newly purchased cordless phone and dialled Edward's cell number. He picked up on the second ring.

"Bella? Is everything okay?"

I sighed. "Yeah, I guess. Other than my having to cancel our epic Risk battle tomorrow. Charlie's arranged a play date," I told him bitterly.

"Oh, God. Why would he do that?" Edward sounded sympathetic.

"Apparently, in Charlie's mind, I need a girlfriend."

"Ah – he doesn't like you hanging around with me." _Oh hell, not the moroseness again_.

"Not exactly… he has nothing against you personally. He likes you. But he is a dad, and I guess dads worry about these sorts of things. I don't know."

"Who's your play date?"

"Some lawyer's daughter… Alice I think he said her name was."

"Alice Brandon."

"Er… yeah. Is that bad?"

"No, Alice is… Alice is nice enough. I'm sure you'll like her. Really, it could have been so much worse. When you said lawyer's daughter, I was worried you were going to say Lauren Mallory. I would have feared for your life. Thank God we won't be at the picnic – her and Jessica Stanley would dominate your time all day to dig for information about you to spread around."

That sounded like a truth learned from experience.

I sighed, the fucking picnic. Goddamn Charlie and his guilt trip. "About that… my dad is kind of forcing me to go."

"Shit."

"Yep. It's going to suck so bad. Unless… will you come with me? Please?"

"No. I'm sorry, but… God, it's too horrible. I just can't. I'm sorry."

He really did sound sorry. I pushed some more. "Edward, please. I'll owe you forever. I need someone to steer me away from the Lauren Mallorys and keep me generally sane. Please."

"Luckily, there is only one Lauren Mallory."

"Please."

He sighed loudly into the phone and I thought I'd won.

"Nope. Sorry." _Fuck_. He paused for a moment. "But how about this – I'll give you my cell and you can call me when it gets too bad and you can't take anymore. I'll come and rescue you."

"But my dad…"

"He won't notice once it gets going. Too many people, and he's always stuck in front of a barbeque."

"He'll worry if he can't find me."

"Then I'll have Esme tell him she'll drive you home afterward so he won't be looking. No one can say no to Esme."

"That just might work."

"Of course it will. Don't feel like you have to leave if you're having a good time, though. I won't be offended."

I snorted. "I highly doubt that's going to happen. Even if this Alice person ends up being my new BFF. I detest crowds, especially ones where I'm the new, shiny freak show everyone stares at."

"You should stay away from me, then, if you don't like being stared at."

Of course people would stare if he were in the general vicinity – he was too gorgeous not to. But I didn't think that's what he meant. He wasn't the narcissistic type at all. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing. Forget it."

"No, I will not forget it. Why do you keep saying those things?"

"Seriously, I'm just being stupid. Ignore me. I've got to go – Esme's calling me for dinner. Let me know how playtime goes tomorrow."

"All right, fine," I grumbled. "Talk to you tomorrow."

~*~

There was a loud rapping on my front door at 9 o'clock sharp. To say I was shocked by the appearance of the girl on the other side of it would be an understatement. For one thing, she didn't look big enough to have caused the thunderous banging noise she had just been making -- her hands, as well as the rest of her, were tiny and pale. She had a perfectly symmetrical face, with large blue eyes, red rosebud lips and a button nose. Spiky black hair adorned her head, sticking up every which way in purposeful disarray. She was wearing a bright yellow sundress and teetering on a very high pair of espadrilles.

"Bella?" she asked in a chirpy little voice. Everything about this girl made me feel like a bulky brute of a person.

"Umm… yeah. You must be Alice."

She grinned widely and nodded her head.

I was pleasantly surprised to find out that Alice Brandon turned out to be better than "nice enough". Her boldness and early morning perkiness startled me at first, but her cheerful manner was catching and I found myself grinning and laughing along with her in no time.

We spent the morning discussing lacklustre Forks and my life in Phoenix. (_Oh, to live in the sun!_ Alice informed me she planned on doing just that – she was only applying to schools in California and Hawaii.)

She asked me what I'd been up to since arriving in town and I told her I'd been mostly hanging around the house. I don't know why I refrained from mentioning Edward -- who of course she would know – I just wanted to keep him to myself while I still could. I had been wishing for a friend to discuss his odd behaviour with only the day before, but still I held back. It felt like a betrayal of him to discuss our friendship with Alice, so I kept it to myself. It felt like it was what he would have wanted me to do, and that thought made me sad.

Alice left in the afternoon, needing to go help her mother with preparations for the upcoming picnic, which she gushed about being "so much fun" and told me she couldn't wait to "introduce me to absolutely everyone". I held back my cringe. _Ugh_ – as much as I liked Alice, the last thing I wanted was to be introduced to "absolutely everyone". And there was the issue of her being yet another obstacle in my plan of escape with Edward. I smiled and waved at her as she walked down the driveway, all the while contemplating ways to dodge her next Saturday.

I called Edward before bed and told him all about my conversations with Alice and how surprised I was that I actually liked her. He laughed when he commented that Charlie had good matchmaking skills, but I could tell it was fake. He sounded genuinely bothered by my enthusiasm.

Why would my being friends with Alice Brandon bother Edward? She was really pretty and so was he – had they dated in the past? That would certainly put a damper on either of my budding friendships, though I already knew which one I would sacrifice if push came to shove. I almost wished I had brought Edward up in front of her now, if only to see her reaction to his name.

I tossed and turned my way into a fitful sleep, considering this possibility. When I finally went under completely, Edward was there with the raspberries.

~*~

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